Fleet cars and staff cars - the SME need to know

There are a number of daunting aspects of starting up a new business. Tax, insurance, logistics and recruitment can seem like purpose built mazes designed to trap and punish the uninitiated. Fleet and staff cars have the unfortunate accolade of covering all of these confusing and at times infuriating areas. With this in mind we decided to list our top 5 things small business owners need to know about fleet cars and staff cars.

1. Encourage positive driver behaviour – This needs to be constantly considered as the alternative is drivers continuing dangerous, costly and unprofessional habits. These, if not managed, can cause real hardship for everyone involved. Driver training courses are now very common and in most cases the return on investment is substantial with lower fuel costs and accident rates.

2. GPS and tracking – Coordinating drop offs with customers can be a real challenge and without up to date navigation and tracking everyone is in the dark. These systems are constantly evolving and now offer far more than simply giving directions. Modern GPS/tracking systems can manage speeding, load management and specialised alerts.

3. Novated leases – Recruitment can seem like a major trauma at times and choosing the right package for your chosen candidate can seem like an impossible balance. With this in mind organising novated lease arrangements for staff vehicles can tip the balance in your favour during employment negotiations.

4. Consider who you want to manage purchasing and maintenance of the vehicle fleet – Cost effective fleet and vehicle management can encompass highly niche aspects. Areas like fuel and maintenance management and can place a very large burden on either you as the business owner or on a member of your staff. Consider the option of outsourcing at least some of the fleet management process to specialists in order to unlock potential savings.

5. Continually updating and communicating the message within the organisation – Continually telling drivers to use cost efficient driving practices as well as reinforcing positive driving behaviour is tiring work. But creating a diligent culture on this topic can have a highly beneficial effect as it challenges new recruits to understand the depths that you have gone to in order to reduce costs.

Further thoughts

Fleet and staff vehicles are needed for everything from transporting goods to getting to off-site meetings. While you as a business owner are not responsible for staff members personal vehicles, you do need to be aware of what risks and opportunities these vehicles can bring. Work and personal vehicles have, for decades, been at the very heart of the Australian business and overlooking the environment surrounding them can cost your business top level recruits, cash in the bank and unnecessary stress.